Dry powder inhalers are widely used to dispense or release powdered medicament from a powder source which can then be inhaled by a patient. The powder source may be a capsule, a blister pack, a tape dose strip, an elongate peelable blister strip, a disk comprising several pre-metered doses or any other type of powder reservoir. One example of a dry powder inhaler includes U.S. Pat. No. 7,694,676.
Known single and multi-dose dry powder inhalers use either individual pre-measured doses, such as capsules, blisters or any other type of powder reservoirs, containing medicament which are inserted into the device prior to use, or incorporate a bulk powder reservoir, from which successive quantities of medicament are transferred to a dispensing chamber.
Dry powder inhalers typically comprise a housing, a mouthpiece or nosepiece, and a button for dispensing the medicament. In the case of capsule-based inhalers a medicament chamber is provided within which a powdered medicament capsule can be located and the button is provided with a piercing pin. In use, a capsule is located within the cavity and the button is depressed causing the pin to pierce the capsule and release the powdered medicament which can be inhaled into a user's respiratory tract through the mouthpiece. Similarly, in dry powder inhalers based on blisters or other pre-metered powder storage systems (any other type of powder reservoirs), by pressing a button, the blister or other pre-metered powder storage systems are pierced or otherwise opened, which allows the powder to be inhaled. In other dry powder inhalers, buttons are similarly used to trigger events that will end up with a medicament dose ready to be inhaled.
The present disclosure concerns developments and/or improvements relating to inhalers such as dry powder inhalers.